The best answers to this question are included in this book, along with the traditional quilt blocks they inspired.Laurie Aaron Hird provides everything you need to be inspired and create your own sampler quilt:- 111 six-inch quilt blocks, with assembly diagrams for piecing the blocks and template cutting directions - Complete instruction for making a sampler quilt in any traditional size: lap, twin, queen or king - CD with easy-to-print, full-sized templates for all 111 blocks, and printable quilt construction diagrams - 42 letters from the 1922 Farmer's Wife contest to give you a priceless glimpse into our country's past

    Easy-to-follow patterns, beautiful photographs, and colorful step-by-step drawings help the projects come together quickly----many in less than an hour. Whether they are created in kimono silks or in contemporary cottons, these tiny boxes, purses, decorative toys, incense pouches, and good luck charms all make delightful gifts.

    This book shows novice and expert quilters alike new ways of planning, designing, and constructing contemporary quilts. The Modern Quilt Workshop takes you through every step of making a quilt, encouraging you and challenging you along the way. YouÆll learn basic principles of quilt design, as well as new technical skills that will make your quilts more beautiful, more durable, and more fun to make.Never before published, these breathtaking patterns were created to help you learn specific design and technical skills. Want to learn how to piece circles flawlessly? Need to fine-tune your color choices? Confused about how to choose quilting patterns? Follow the step-by-step diagrams and youÆll be mastering new design concepts and innovative techniques with each new project.Each of the 15 quilt projects shows the level of difficulty, lists the skills youÆll learn, and shows how each quilt might look in different color combinations.Design tips in each chapter teach you what to look for in fabrics, or options for how to quilt the quilt.Measurements and yardage requirements are provided for 4 sizes, from baby quilts to bed quilts.Cutting templates, and tips for using them, are included.A thorough section on quilt construction and assembly helps even the first-time quilter learn the basics of cutting, piecing, aligning seams, thread color selection, choosing batting, quilting, and binding. Beginning quilters will love the simple, yet sophisticated, patterns that can turn a pile of cotton fabric into a work of art. Advanced quilters will hone technical and design skills, as well as master new techniques, such as improvisational piecing and working with sophisticated color palettes.Whether you wish to create a treasured family heirloom or a beautiful gift for a friend, these unique patterns will inspire you to try something new.

    There's a Russian Shawl Quilt, inspired by traditional motifs of Russian folk art, a Floral Frocks Quilt inspired by summer dresses, flower gardens and herbaceous borders and a Suits and Ties Quilt reusing sober woollen suiting contrasting with extravagant silk ties designed in an Irish Chain.Finally, a practical section covers all the knowledge you’ll need – from chainpiecing, hand-quilting and sandwiching to binding, storage and caring for your quilt. Armed with the design tools, you can embark on your quilting journey and begin creating your own personal masterpiece.

    It grows imperceptibly at first, but soon takes over your sewing room, and, if you’re not careful, your life. Joan Ford is a quilt designer who recognized a need to clear the clutter among her fellow quilters and came up with a fun and effective way to deal with it. Enter ScrapTherapy™, Ford’s feel-good method for organizing the mounds of fabric — from yards and fat quarters to skinny scraps — and turning them into quilts and a wide array of accessories. In this innovative book, Ford offers step-by-step instructions for cutting a fabric stash down to size — quite literally — and provides 20 original patterns for quilts, pillows, table runners, and more.

    Whether you are growing plants in hanging baskets, tubs, window boxes or other containers this hobby is immensely gratifying.  If you are new to container gardening and buy your containers pre-planted, you get a sense of instant gratification and fulfillment.  It won't be long however, before you are hit with the gardening virus and you'll find yourself expanding to one more pot and then again, one more container.  Before you know it, the urge to plant and nurture will take over. At this point, you need a garden plan for your container garden. Use this monthly container gardening checklist to keep your containers at peak performance. When do I plant spring bulbs in containers? When do I perk up my annual plantings with some new varieties? What do I do with container plants I want to save over winter? These and many other questions are answered in this container gardening book. At the beginning of the month, check out the tasks and tips on the schedule.  You may find items you never thought of and may also learn techniques used by professional gardeners and landscapers that will make your container gardens the envy of the neighborhood. Scroll up and pick up this book today and give your patio, pool, and porch just the pizzazz it needs to perk up your landscaping plans.

    Then, the 50 projects are divided into five sections: Ageing and Distressing; Working with the Base; Working with Colour; Handpainting; and Crackle, Gilding and Decoupage. There are step-by-step images showing how to achieve the finished look, before shots and inspirational photography showing the effects used on walls and doors, furniture and floors. Learn how to bring old second-hand furniture bang up to date, or how to give modern pieces a softly aged appearance, as well as ways to treat and transform floorboards, doors and plastered walls. Whatever the style of your interiors, Quick and Easy Paint Transformations will show you the best way to makeover your home."

    It's like a private "show me" quilt class designed to help quilters expand their skills.

    From a New York City Green Guerrilla to the Texas Rose Rustlers and a Colorado tomato fanatic, Chotzinoff serves up colorful profiles of americanca’s quirkiest, most fervent gardeners.

    Start by learning the basics of piecing and how to use a rotary cutter, then making a quilt sandwich, quilting, and finally, binding your new project! A fantastic guide for anyone looking to start a new hobby, Quilting Techniques for Beginners will have you quilting in no time!

    In this inspiring book, Kay Warren teaches women what joy really is, where to find it, and how to choose it in the good times and the bad. With compassion and wisdom, she shows readers--even those who live with the constant companions of discouragement and depression--that true joy is deeper, richer, and more accessible than they might think. Perfect for small groups or individual reading, Choose Joy will empower women who feel like their emotions and well-being are at the mercy of others by helping them understand the life-giving truth that joy is within their grasp--every day.

    Juried by Karey Bresenhan, one of the most prominent figures in quilting, it presents 500 magnificent contemporary art quilts, made in fabric and other media, and showcasing diverse designs, materials, and techniques.From their very inception, these quilts were destined for display rather than practical use, with an extraordinary quality of image, form, line, and composition.  Artists include:Pamela Allen  -  Alice Beasley  -  Eszter Bornemisza  -  Jane Burch Cochran  -  Judith Content  -  Chiaki Dosho  -  Noriko Endo  -  Caryl Bryer Fallert  -  Jamie Fingal  -  Linda Gass  -  Jenny Hearn  -  Judy Coates Perez  -  Yvonne Porcella  -  Susan Shie  -  Jen Swearington  -  and many more!

    Even non-gardeners will find this book of essays a source of profound pleasure, for Raver is a writer who transcends her subject even as she illuminates it, writing with such passion, wisdom and stylishmess that her book will enchant anyone who reads it.

    White takes the reader step by step through the process of making natural soaps for family, friends, and for profit. Easy to understand and master. This second edition includes extended directions for first time soap makers, new recipes, how to make soap in small and large batches and a guide to using essential oils. Includes tips and advice for how to cut and cure soap, how to sell your soaps, packaging and labeling, and how to set up at a craft fair or market. Over 45 soap recipes from luxurious to economical.

    This title offers beginner-friendly quilt projects that work well with any decor, in any room, and for everyone in the family. It is useful for adding a touch of colour and style to your home.